Axiom's Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy

By John J. Joex

The first half of the 2009-10 season is already on the downside for most shows and three of the Science Fiction and Fantasy entries appear destined for an upcoming date with the network executioner with one more living on the edge. I’m raising the Cancellation Alert on Heroes, Eastwick, and Dollhouse, but I’m leaving Fringe alone for now.

So far this season, Heroes has been a shadow of its former self, ratings-wise, even if it has managed to rediscover some of the magic from its first season quality-wise. The Renew/Cancel index from TV by the Numbers has insisted the show is safe since it resides on fourth place NBC, but I have been saying since the show’s poor fourth-season debut that it is in trouble. And now the word is that the network has told the writers to go ahead and work on a final chapter. It’s uncertain at this point whether that means we will see more episodes in Spring, but the announcement comes as no surprise because the series has continued to struggle n the ratings and continues to get negative buzz (even though I have been enjoying the current season for the most part). And perhaps letting the show go out on its own terms is best. Then perhaps they can consider the option down the road of additional TV movies or Direct-to-DVD releases a la Stargate and Battlestar Galactica.

On Wednesdays, ABC’s Eastwick got off to a so-so start in the ratings then went down from there. It has now dropped below the numbers that Life on Mars and Eli Stone pulled last season when they received their walking papers, so this one can’t expect to stick around much longer. Sure, ABC called it a “quiet success”, but then who wants to admit to having a failure on your hands? They may let this one air out its full order of thirteen episodes without the Saturday night banishment I previously expected, but I don’t see anything else beyond that.

I side-stepped taking a guess on Dollhouse’s future for several weeks, despite its abysmal ratings, but its fate seems pretty certain now. FOX pulled the show from its schedule during the all-important November sweeps so that it would not pull down the network’s overall numbers. They will then air two-hour blocks of the show in December and burn off the remaining few episodes in January. I can’t imagine them putting more money into this show after that, though, seeing as it has pulled numbers that even the CW would balk at. I guess you have to give them credit for giving this show a second season, but couldn’t they have helped it out with a better timeslot?

And then there’s the case of Fringe. Several sources are suggesting that the J.J. Abrams show is in trouble because of its ratings struggles in its new timeslot. Of course some of these are the same sources that said the show was on the bubble toward the end of its first season. I didn’t drink the kool aid then, and I’m not taking a sip now. Sure, the show has struggled on Thursday nights, but it has to contend with juggernauts Grey’s Anatomy and CSI along with Supernatural which draws a similar audience. FOX had to expect the type of numbers Fringe has pulled so far, and I can’t believe they would axe the show at this point. If they did, that would be one of the biggest franchise-truncating gaffs since Firefly – er . . . uh . . . well . . . let’s hope they don’t do it. If they do, this will be a clear case of a network killing a promising show with huge franchise potential (along the lines of its spiritual predecessor The X-Files) simply through bone-headed scheduling. I have to believe they will be patient with this one, but then there’s a part of me that knows anything is possible where network executives are concerned.

So if and when these show do get the axe (all except Fringe that is), do they have a chance of getting saved by a fan campaign? I don’t see much happening on the Heroes front so far, nor do I expect much activity. Eastwick has a campaign underway (see our Save My Show page for more info), but that show never developed much of an audience to begin with. One of the cable networks could take a flyer on Dollhouse since it has Joss Whedon attached to it and a lot of positive buzz following it. Heroes could even live on with another channel, but I doubt it. And if the unthinkable happens and Fringe does get the axe, I have to believe someone will want to pick that one up with J.J. Abrams’ pedigree and its significant following.

Other than that, I believe that the rest of the shows currently airing on the networks and the cable channels are safe through the first half of the season, though check back at our Cancellation Watch page on a regular basis for further updates.

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